Alvaro Quiros marked a dramatic return to the winners’ circle at the Rocco Forte Open in Sicily, as the Spaniard defeated South Africa’s Zander Lombard in a play-off to claim his first European Tour title in over six years.
The 34 year old, who prior to this week had only made five cuts in his last 20 events, defied the form book at Verdura, shooting rounds of 63, 64 and 70 to lead the field by five shots with 18 holes to play.
Quiros, who lost his European Tour card last season, then came flying out of the blocks in the final round with four birdies in the first six holes – draining long birdie putts at the fifth and sixth to lead by seven.
But, with the winning post in sight, things started to unravel for the Spaniard, as four bogeys and a double-bogey opened the door for potential contenders.
Lombard, who shot 62 in the first round, looked the most likely challenger, with the 22 year old from Pretoria racking up seven birdies in his first 13 holes. His final round 68 piled the pressure on playing partner Quiros, who was forced to hole a ten-footer on the last to take it to extra holes – signing for a two over 73 and joining Lombard on a 14 under total.
Quiros made his experience count in the playoff though, and after they halved the first play-off hole in pars, a smart two-putt for par was enough to seal the victory for Quiros, after Lombard missed a three-footer to end his hopes of a maiden win.
Lombard’s consolation came in the shape of qualification for this week’s BMW PGA Championship, while Li Haotong of China finished in outright third after holing an albatross at the par-five 12th en route to a final round 66 and a 13 under total.
The winner didn’t celebrate in the manner of someone who has been struggling with his game for so many years. “Obviously it shouldn’t have been like that with a play-off, but in the end it’s a victory, and that’s the most important thing,” said Quiros. “It was a little bit of a mess today. My game wasn’t that bad, but I started to struggle with the left-to-right wind over the last few holes. I didn’t have an idea how many shots I was leading by early on, but I knew on 18 that I had to make a putt to halve with Zander.”
He added: “It’s a strange feeling, because it’s a victory, but unfortunately I didn’t really like how I ended the round. It should never have gone that far. But at the same time I could be talking about finishing second, so I’m happy. I’m positive, because it means I can go back onto the European Tour.
“Obviously the lowest point was last season, losing my card for the first time in my career. The most important thing for me back then was to recover my game, because I knew that if I could do that after a year on the Challenge Tour I should be able to get my card and come back. Fortunately it happened earlier, and I’m happy to say I’m hitting the ball better. I know where I am technically and that’s a big improvement.”